Freshman Congressman Max Noble gave up his career as a magazine publisher to pursue a life of public service. A botched assassination attempt may have changed his mind. Having lost his wife in the melee, Max ponders his fate at home while the arrogant President Cole delivers his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress attended by every cabinet member and federal official.

But when a terrorist named "Sultan," murders the speech's attendees on national television, Max's time to grieve for his slain wife is over. Sultan announces that he has taken control of the United States' military facilities, including its nuclear arsenal, and that the once democratic United States of America will now be known as the "Islamic States of America," governed by his new caliphate and its military.

At the Pentagon, General Daniel Harmon, now the highest ranking American military official, determines that the only way to preserve the peace is for all American military and law enforcement personnel to submit to Sultan's rule.

Max is placed in hiding by his top advisors, Bob Dalton and Jack Armstrong, knowing that as the only living elected official of the United States' government, he is a prime target. Despite having no legitimate claim to the presidency under the Constitution, Max is determined to do what he must to restore freedom to the nation.

With absolute power to implement his plan, Sultan begins to govern the former United States in a Taliban-like manner, instituting laws that men must wear beards and that women cannot work in the new, male-dominant society, and enforcing them with violence and a complete disregard for human rights.

Aided by Dalton and Armstrong, Max raises a militia led by John Sharpe, a renegade military leader who refuses to surrender to Sultan. As Max prepares for the impending war, his college girlfriend, Roxy Fidelis, seeks him out with her son, Zach, to provide Max with a support system and become the family he never had.

Max's adventures take him into several battles, encountering many eccentric characters along the way. Max must persevere through numerous challenges, from arena-style duels to a nuclear strike on a major American metropolis to political opposition to his authority. Throughout his ordeal, Max struggles to balance his responsibilities and duties to the American people with those he owes to his newfound family. Ultimately, Max comes to realize that that to truly be free means that each person must choose his or her own destiny, no matter the cost.